Principal Machine Learning Engineer, Agent Harness - Meta Factory

Adobe; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 262,000 - 379,000; Full time

Job summary

Adobe Unified Platform is building the system that changes how software gets made at Adobe. The Principal Machine Learning Engineer will define the long‑term technical direction for the Agent Harness and lead senior technical initiatives across Adobe’s agentic systems.

You’ll set standards for AI‑native software development at scale, mentor engineers, and drive architectural decisions that impact thousands of Adobe engineers.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of software engineering experience with Adobe or across the industry.
• Deep expertise in distributed systems, runtime build, and platform architecture.
• Recognized expertise in agentic systems and LLM infrastructure with hands‑on scaling work.
• Experience driving AI‑first architecture, engineering standards, and product direction.
• Strong communication and influence skills to align senior leaders and teams.

Responsibilities

• Work with architects to shape the technical direction of the Agent Harness.
• Define harness interfaces and standards balancing performance, cost and reliability.
• Evaluate emerging trends in agent runtimes and tool-use standards for adoption.
• Define AI‑first architecture and engineering standards across Adobe.
• Lead cross‑team technical initiatives and mentor senior technical talent.
• Advise leadership on agentic execution challenges and strategic direction.

Skills

Software engineering

Distributed systems

Agentic systems

LLM infrastructure

AI‑first architecture

Leadership

Communication

Job description

The Opportunity

Adobe Unified Platform is building the system that changes how software gets made at Adobe. A platform that understands builders’ intent, breaks down complex work, executes it through autonomous agents, and improves with every cycle. What this team ships multiplies across thousands of Adobe engineers, and it’s the substrate the rest of Adobe's agentic efforts build on.

Meta Factory is the core of that platform: the Agentic Builders Experience that defines how agents understand their goals, decompose work, use tools, evaluate their own outcomes, and improve over time. Think of it as our own version of Claude Code, optimized for Adobe needs, model independent and operated for the whole company.

We are looking for a Principal Machine Learning Engineer to define the technical architecture of the Agent Harness and serve as one of Adobe’s senior technical leaders in agentic systems. You will set the long-term technical direction, solve the hardest design challenges, and establish engineering standards for AI-native software development at Adobe scale.

What you’ll do

• Work as part of a team of architects shaping the technical direction of the Agent Harness, contributing across agent execution, tool use, context, state, and lifecycle management.


• Define harness interfaces and standards while balancing performance, cost, and reliability.


• Track emerging trends in agent runtimes and tool-use standards and lead their evaluation and adoption at Adobe.


• Define AI-first architecture and engineering standards for agentic systems across Adobe.


• Lead cross-team technical initiatives and provide guidance on complex architectural challenges.


• Advise engineering leadership on emerging agentic execution challenges and mentor senior technical talent across the organization.

What you’ll need to succeed

• 15+ years of software engineering experience, with a strong record of innovation and business impact at Adobe or across the industry.


• Deep expertise in distributed systems, runtime build, and platform architecture, with experience leading large multi-functional initiatives.


• Recognized expertise in agentic systems and LLM infrastructure, with hands‑on experience fine‑tuning, optimizing, and operating models or runtimes at scale.


• Experience driving AI‑first architecture, engineering standards, technology choices, and product direction across organizations.


• Strong communication and influence skills, with the ability to align senior leaders and teams around a shared technical vision.

About Adobe

Adobe empowers everyone to create through innovative platforms and tools that unleash creativity, productivity and personalized customer experiences. Adobe’s industry‑leading offerings including Adobe Acrobat Studio, Adobe Express, Adobe Firefly, Creative Cloud, Adobe Experience Platform, Adobe Experience Manager, and GenStudio enable people and businesses to turn ideas into impact, powered by AI and driven by human ingenuity.

Our 30,000+ employees worldwide are creating the future and raising the bar as we drive the next decade of growth. We’re on a mission to hire the very best and believe in creating a company culture where all employees are empowered to make an impact. At Adobe, we believe that great ideas can come from anywhere in the organization. The next big idea could be yours.

Let’s Adobe together

At Adobe, we believe in creating a company culture where all employees are empowered to make an impact. Learn more about Adobe life, including our values and culture, focus on people, purpose and community, Adobe for All, comprehensive benefits programs, the stories we tell, the customers we serve, and how you can help us advance our mission of empowering everyone to create.

AI Use Guidelines for Interviews:

Our interviews are designed to reflect your own skills and thinking. The use of AI or recording tools during live interviews is not permitted unless explicitly invited by the interviewer or approved in advance as part of a reasonable accommodation. If these tools are used inappropriately or in a way that misrepresents your work, your application may not move forward in the process.

At Adobe, we empower employees to innovate with AI — and we look for candidates eager to do the same. As part of the hiring experience, we provide clear guidance on where AI is encouraged during the process and where it’s restricted during live interviews. See how we think about AI in the hiring experience.

Expected Pay Range:

Our compensation reflects the cost of labor across several U.S. geographic markets, and we pay differently based on those defined markets. The U.S. pay range for this position is $206,400 -- $379,100 annually. Pay within this range varies by work location and may also depend on job‑related knowledge, skills, and experience. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the job location during the hiring process.

In California, the pay range for this position is $261,800 - $379,100

At Adobe, for sales roles starting salaries are expressed as total target compensation (TTC = base + commission), and short-term incentives are in the form of sales commission plans. Non-sales roles starting salaries are expressed as base salary and short-term incentives are in the form of the Annual Incentive Plan (AIP).

In addition, certain roles may be eligible for long-term incentives in the form of a new hire equity award.

State-Specific Notices:

California:

Fair Chance Ordinances

Adobe will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records for employment in accordance with state and local laws and "fair chance" ordinances.

Colorado:

Application Window Notice

If this role is open to hiring in Colorado (as listed on the job posting), the application window will remain open until at least the date and time stated above in Pacific Time, in compliance with Colorado pay transparency regulations. If this role does not have Colorado listed as a hiring location, no specific application window applies, and the posting may close at any time based on hiring needs.

Massachusetts:

Massachusetts Legal Notice

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.